The Unfathomable POWER of... WONDER
Chip Green
I help people THINK safe, ACT safe, BE SAFE... and THAT helps their companies.
FROM THE BOOK -
As we “Fffphhff’d” our way on up the trail I began to enjoy the “rhythm” of this day like few others before it. A couple of times we came across tracks, and Tuck would stop to reveal the ‘story’ they told… “You see them series of big holes amongst those coyote tracks?”
“Yessir.”
“He’s scent trailin’ a vole, or rabbit, or something under the drifts. The holes are where he was pretty sure he had ‘em dead-to-rights, and dove in after them.”
Before these last two days, I would have never believed that holes in a snow bank would have been worth looking at, let alone be the least bit interesting. But I was enthralled! This old man was gooood! He was very, very good.
“Well,” I said “…did he get ‘em?!”
“Not yet.”
“Oh” says I, trying to rush my ‘wisdom’ a bit “…that’s because there’ no blood on the snow, right?”
Tuck gave me a wink, “That would be one possible sign, boy. Good thinking.”
I smiled.
He continued. “But take another look Travis. See how ‘clean’ the hole is… no wallerin’ or tearing about? There’s no struggle, he’s still just exploring.”
We’d gone about another thirty yards when the whole lane looked like 50 coyotes had had a barn dance!
“Look Mr. Tuck! He GOT HIM!” (you’d a thought I was a six year-old at Disneyland…).
He chuckled, “Well, they definitely said some ‘howdies’ here.” Then he pointed with the limb tip of his bow, “But you see that single hole, over there towards the brush, about ten steps? And then that other one a few steps further, over there… right into that briar patch?”
“Yessir.”
“My guess is, that’s where that old rabbit (we’d finally seen his tracks amid the churn of torn snow) got tired of the dance and headed home.”
“So... you don’t think he got him?” I wasn’t so sad about a coyote going without a meal as I was about my tracking ‘skills’ once again proving to be incomplete… at best.
“Well son, a scene like this is where your blood-sign should definitely show itself, don’t you think?”
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Yep. That made perfect sense. DANG IT!
“That, combined with those holes over yonder, and the fact that the coyote tracks lose focus right here and start meandering towards the Lodge, makes for a pretty good chance that he ain’t tasted his lunch… yet.”
Tuck’s eyes were gleaming, as though he were as excited about these leftovers of drama in the snow as I now was. And you want to know the truth? He was. That was another wonderful facet of the old man’s draw for me. His knowledge and experience and wisdom, they never acted as a gulf between us. On the contrary, he had a wonderful capacity for using them all as a natural bridge between where he was, had been… and I desperately wanted to be.
_____________________
QUESTIONS -
* As a SEARCHER, has a mentor's own curiosity and boundless wonder about a subject ever peaked your interest in something you never thought you'd find all that "interesting"?
...yep, me too.
* As a MENTOR, has it ever occurred to you that being a perpetual 'expert' (nice word for boring 'know-it-all') may not be nearly as exciting to your student(s) as sharing your own unvarnished, pure WONDER about things?
* Do you think it's possible to TEACH powerful, lasting things about subjects you don't have 'all' the answers for?
...trust me, IT IS. And it's a whole lot more fun for BOTH, you AND your learners that way.
I've noticed a new "trendy" topic making its way through the LinkedIn community of leaders/influencers/SMEs/etc. They call it "IMPOSTER SYNDROME". The definition seems to follow some of my own early feelings and self-doubts -
* "I don't KNOW... EVERYTHING about this subject. So what am I doing up here, telling folks about ANY of it?!"
* "Any minute now, THEY (your audience/class/crew/team) are going to KNOW I don't KNOW... EVERYTHING!"
* "If THEY (your audience/class/crew/team) only knew about my past MISTAKES (that even with what I know about this, I'm NOT flawlessly 'perfect')... they would walk out RIGHT NOW!"
Ever felt any of that?
...yeah, me too.
Until I finally figured IT out.
And just what is "IT"?
That a couple of old adages are absolutely TRUE.
Once I figured that out, I simply started sharing the PASSION I had/have for whatever subject I've been asked to share my knowledge, experience and thoughts about. That was a good start. But when I finally stopped even thinking about what I was called (an SME), and just shared the powerful joy of my own WONDER about things (which, by God's Grace did/does include some things I've learned and 'know') my audiences have, without fail, caught the bug - and joined in with their own budding (or too-long suppressed) child-like WONDER.
THAT is when my talks, lessons, presentations, seminars... and value to those good people really took off.
And I've learned exponentially more, myself, in the process.
I like that!
-CM Sackett-